Well, to answer your questions the neck is lovely, satin finish on the back, I whizz around on it quite happily. Positions is an interesting question. I fitted a Freeway 10-way switch to give me more options (like combining pickups in series, using the first and third together etc.). My favourite positions are neck pickup only, neck and middle in series, and middle and bridge in series. Note that the second two are only available by modding - the stock five way switch is wired exactly like a Strat - N, N+M, M, M+B, B - all parallel.
I am not renowned for my liking of the bridge pickups, but the bridge pickup on the Triad is one of the few that have impressed me.